SPRINGFIELD – Joining a trend set by Wal-Mart and its competitors, Schnucks pharmacies this week began filling free prescriptions for seven different generic antibiotics.

"It just made a lot of sense for who we are as a company and our strategy for our stores," Bob Mueller, director of pharmacy for the St. Louis-based Schnucks supermarket chain, said Monday.

The chain's pharmacies at its stores in Springfield, Peoria, Bloomington, Champaign, Urbana and Rockford began offering the free prescription drugs on Monday as "phase two" of the company's plan to better compete in a "Wal-Mart world," Mueller said.

Analysts say Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, has become the nation's largest retailer of groceries.
Mueller said the first phase of Schnucks' efforts to boost its competitive position began several months ago, when Schnucks permanently reduced the price of 10,000 items - everything from canned goods to cereals and breads.

For an indefinite period, Schnucks Pharmacies will fill free prescriptions for 54 different versions of the oral antibiotic drugs amoxicillin, ampicillin, ciprofloxacin, doxycycline, erythromycin, penicillin and trimeth/sulfa.
Prescriptions for up to 21 days will be filled for free through the program, which also will cover refills.

Drugs in the program represent one-third of all antibiotics - brand-name and generic - dispensed by the 99 Schnucks pharmacies in Illinois, Missouri, Indiana, Wisconsin, Iowa, Tennessee and Mississippi, Mueller said.

Ex-minister pleads not guilty to child porn charge

PEORIA - A former minister and substitute teacher pleaded not guilty in federal court on Monday to producing child porn.

James Curtis Love, 37, was indicted earlier this month in U.S. District Court in Peoria on two counts of production of child pornography. If convicted, Love faces 15 to 30 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000 and lifetime supervised release.

Love was arrested in May and charged in McLean County with four counts of aggravated battery and four counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse. He is accused of sedating teen boys and taking lewd photographs of them while they slept.

He was ordered held at the McLean County Jail pending his Dec. 17 trial date before U.S. District Judge Michael Mihm. A Dec. 10 trial has been set in the state case.

Authorities say that when Love was arrested, officials seized several computers from his home and at least one image of child pornography.

Before his arrest, Love was a minister at Mount Pisgah Baptist Church in Bloomington. He also worked at State Farm and as a substitute teacher in Bloomington and Normal.

Tazewell teen allegedly ran over friend; faces charge

PEKIN - A Washington teenager faces a reckless driving charge for allegedly running over his friend, who police say was riding on the hood of the car.

Alexander Dix, 17, of 1118 Dallas Road told police he was driving in the 1500 block of Woodbine in Washington on Oct. 16 when he saw several friends of his in the street.

That's when one of them, Jake Reatherford, 16, of Washington jumped on the hood of Dix's car, asking Dix to drive, police said.

Dix said he was driving between 15 and 20 mph when he became nervous because Reatherford was pounding on the windshield and hood.

Dix hit the brakes, causing Reatherford to fall from the hood, but the vehicle continued moving forward, running over Reatherford.

Reatherford was admitted to OSF Saint Francis Medial Center in Peoria with a broken pelvis and internal injuries, but hospital officials said he has since been released.

Dix faces a single count of reckless driving. He is scheduled to return to Tazewell County Court on Nov. 30.

Belvidere man gets prison time for ’05 reckless homicide

BELVIDERE - A Belvidere man was sentenced to three and a half years in prison for a 2005 reckless homicide.

The case dates back to Sept. 2, 2005, when Mains admitted to consuming about five alcoholic drinks at the Hideaway in Garden Prairie before getting behind the wheel of his motorcycle and piloting it down the small community’s train tracks, according to Lise Lombardo, assistant state’s attorney who handled the case.

Mains struck and killed Harold Winter, 62, who was walking along the tracks near his home.

Mains then fled the scene. Winter was later found by a group of ATV riders.

State trooper sex-abuse trial delayed again

ROCKFORD - The molestation trial of a former Illinois State trooper and Winnebago County Courthouse security guard has been postponed again, the second time in the past month.

William Heintz, 67, is charged with aggravated criminal sexual abuse for allegedly fondling the breast of a female relative between 13 and 17 years old. The abuse is said to have occurred Nov. 24, 2006.

Heintz was supposed to go to trial earlier this month, but jury selection was stopped midway after attorneys in the case asked for more time to assess new information. A new trial date was set for Oct. 29.

In the latest postponement, Heintz’s attorneys argued Monday that certain testimony not be allowed at trial. Judge John Truitt denied the request, but both parties asked for more time to prepare for trial.

A jury trial now is set for Jan. 7. The case will be back in court Nov. 28 for status.

IceHogs' AHL home opener sold out

ROCKFORD - The Rockford IceHogs will play their first home games this weekend in the American Hockey League as a feeder team for the National Hockey League’s Chicago Blackhawks.
The games will take place at the MetroCentre, 300 Elm St., Rockford, which is being remodeled. Friday’s 7:05 p.m. game is sold out, but at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, the ’Hogs play the Manitoba Moose.

Tickets cost $9 to $19 and are available at 815-968-5222 and centreevents.com .

Banner mine project gains state permit

BANNER — A permit to mine coal in a 643-acre site outside Banner is an important step in “the rebirth of an industry deeply rooted in the heritage of Fulton County,” the Canton engineer who handled the permit paperwork said this week.

Capital Resources Development Co. of Chicago first applied for a state permit to mine a 643-acre site just outside Banner six years ago. Company officials got word Friday that they’ll get one.

“As long as they pay their fees and produce their bond, we will issue them the permit,” said Illinois Department of Natural Resources spokesman Chris McCloud.

However, Joyce Blumenshine of the Heart of Illinois Sierra Club called the decision to issue a permit “an insult to the importance” of Banner Marsh and Rice Lake, two state fish and wildlife areas near the mining site.

“A 300-foot buffer is hardly adequate to protect those areas,” she said. “Hunters and fishermen should be very concerned about this.”

Banner Village Board President Ken Fuller, a vocal opponent of the mine, declined to comment on the permit Monday.

The company first applied for a mining permit at the site in 2001. Local residents objected, saying they feared mining operations could damage sewer lines and harm wildlife in the area. Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn backed the objectors, holding a rally across from the proposed mining site to gather support for denial of the permit.

Greg Arnett, an engineer with Capital Resources, estimates 30 to 40 mining jobs will be created at the site, where he said 1.6 million tons of coal can be removed over 10 years.

Two cases of staph infection report

LASALLE — Two cases of staph infection have been confirmed at LaSalle-Peru High School.

In a statement, School Superintendent Craig Carter said two students had contracted methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus, commonly known as MRSA.

MRSA, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health, is resistant to mainstream antibiotics and at times can be deadly. It is treatable with early detection and good medical care.

The department recently received increasing reports of outbreaks. Such outbreaks have occurred among athletes, especially in sports such as football and wrestling, whose participants are prone to skin abrasions.

“To prevent the spread at school, we have begun to ‘superclean’ locker/athletic rooms and equipment that might be shared,” Carter said.

School officials would not disclose the ages or sex of the two students but said they have received treatment.

Progress on Beardstown river project possible

BEARDSTOWN — It’s taken years of wrangling, but Beardstown appears to be on the verge of fulfilling the most basic requirement of being a “river town” — regaining permanent access to the Illinois River.

A federal spending bill awaiting the president’s signature would restore the connection between the Cass County town’s marina and the Illinois River’s main navigational channel.

Muscooten Bay and the marina in Beardstown have suffered from siltation ever since the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, at the direction of Congress, altered the path of the Sangamon River beginning in the 1930s. The Sangamon, which flows into the Illinois River upstream from Beardstown, was rerouted to prevent flooding of nearby farmland.

The 2007 Water Resources Development Act, if authorized, would reverse much of the work on the Sangamon River and remove silt that has mired the marina. U.S. Rep. Ray LaHood, R-Peoria, calls the bill “veto proof.” If it is vetoed, the bill’s overwhelming approval in both houses of Congress would make overriding the veto an easy endeavor.

“We’ve been fighting for over 15 years to get this corrected,” said Beardstown Mayor Bob Walters. “We’ve got to come up with a long-term solution.”

The city and the Corps had worked out temporary fixes in the recent past, including dredging a link between the silt-filled marina and river channel a few years ago. But that area became unnavigable within six months.

Couple arrested for underage drinking party

SPRINGFIELD – A Springfield couple was arrested Saturday night for contributing to the delinquency of minors after police allegedly found 32 underage drinkers at a party at their home.

Thomas F. Winkler, 51, and Janet L. Rockford, 42, both of the 2200 block of West Jefferson Street were taken to Sangamon County Jail.

Springfield police went to their home about 11 p.m after receiving a complaint about a fight there. When officers arrived they found a teenager lying in the roadway in front of the home, though a police report on the incident did not indicate if the teen was injured.

Officers began investigating and allegedly found six to eight teenagers around a bonfire in the backyard, where they also found numerous empty beer cans, police said. Teenagers also were found inside the home.

The Winklers allegedly told police their daughter was having a party but they were unaware there was underage drinking going on. The police report on the incident was forwarded to the state's attorney's office for possible underage drinking charges against the teenagers.